5 Free-to-Play Games That Changed Massively in 2017

Free-to-play! For reals!

By Shunal Doke -
Nov. 15, 2017, 6:58 p.m.

Free to play games have changed quite a bit over the last decade. They're no longer the games that place strict limiters on you for the sake of more money and they're far from second rate compared to full price games. Titles like Warframe, Smite, Dota 2, Paragon and Path of Exile have changed the way we look at the free to play games. All of these games saw some of their biggest updates ever in 2017. Are they worth checking out? Let's break them down.

Warframe – Plains of Eidolon

Digital Extremes' Warframe has always had a loyal following and it doesn't hurt that the game balances its real money market with fair amounts of grinding for progression, frequent updates and great free content. Plains of Eidolon was revolutionary, even for Warframe, bringing the first open world region to the game. It also brought new activities like fishing and mining, a new Bounty system, a new frame called Gara, a rework for the Focus system, giant beasts to battle and major changes to its visuals.

Since it was available on Earth itself within the first few missions, Plains of Eidolon was meant to be a game-changer. Its launch wasn't exactly that and saw major problems with progression, bugs and whatnot. Plains of Eidolon has since been improved with numerous patches and while it's still more of a small step than a major revelation for Warframe, it does represent an exciting new direction for the game as a whole. Oh, and it's completely free which is always nice.

Path of Exile – Fall of Oriath

Path of Exile is one of the best free to play, action RPGs. There's simply no question about it. In 2017, Grinding Gear Games decided to go above and beyond the call of duty with Fall of Oriath. This free expansion didn't just add new features to the game – it brought six new Story acts, new progression for the story (Cruel and Merciless difficulties were removed), introduced the Pantheon system for player to equip the power of different Gods, and of course, brought tons of new items and skill gems for players to muck about with.

When you consider that its “competitor” Diablo 3 released the Necromancer, new items and two new story regions for $15, it's not hard to see why hardcore ARPG players latched onto Path of Exile this year. With Harbinger Challenge leagues, more changes and even more content on the way, Path of Exile maintains its reputation as a top-tier action RPG and free to play title.

Dota 2 – Dueling Fates

Dota 2 has had an exciting year ever since the introduction of Siltbreaker, a co-op PvE campaign that shipped in two acts, to further refinements for last year's Patch 7.00. This year was all about the Dueling Fates aka patch 7.07. It added two new heroes in Pangolier and Dark Willow, brought about tons of changes for its existing heroes, added and removed items from its shops and introduced Turbo Mode.

Touted as one of the best things to come to Dota 2 this year, Turbo Mode gives heroes increased XP and gold gain, reduces respawn times and makes towers easier to destroy. The overall result is a faster, more accessible experience which allows players to try whatever hero they'd like with little to no consequences. Just the fact that matches aren't as overtly long should be enough for most players to jump aboard.

Paragon – The New Dawn

Epic Games' Paragon has seen a number of sweeping changes this year. There's been a new hero every three weeks, visual updates to the Monolith map and much more. However, the most significant update was undoubtedly The New Dawn which completed changed how the Card system worked, masteries and decks worked.

It introduced Universal decks, a new system for Attributes and Gems, rebalanced heroes and mechanics and even reworked major heroes like Iggy and Scorch and Rampage. Though subsequent patches would introduce more quality of life changes, including a total overhaul of the game's HUD and reworks for Gideon, TwinBlast and Grux, 2017 for Paragon would be defined by The New Dawn.

Smite – Adventures

Between all the different MOBAs vying for dominance in 2017, Hi-Rez Studios was in a bit of a quandary. Paladins was continuously moving upwards but Smite, its flagship MOBA, needed a game-changer. Enter Adventures, limited time events that help players work towards new rewards like Limited Skins. Though there have been relatively straightforward events like Nike's Valley of Victory being a glorified CTF mode, Adventures in Smite also include co-op PvE modes where players battle all kinds of AI challenges.

Fafnir's Wonderland, Xing Tian's Mountain and even outright dungeon crawler modes like Trials of King Hercules and Shadows of Hercopolis offered players something new and exciting every month. This is in addition to numerous hero balance changes and quality of life changes of course.